'Jeffrey's Toys' reopens in new location near Union Square

After an extended hiatus, Jeffrey's Toys has reopened at 45 Kearny St. (between Post St. & Maiden Lane) near Union Square.

The original Jeffrey's Toys at 685 Market St. closed in 2015, after 45 years in business. Owner Mark Luhn couldn't keep up with a substantial rent hike—reportedly to $40,000 per month. (The shop's former space remains unoccupied and is still for rent, more than two years later.)

After closing on Market Street, Jeffrey's moved to Fourth Street in Berkeley, and will remain open there. The company announced its return to San Francisco, in the former Asian Arts Center space on Kearny, last month. As before, it will stock a wide selection of toys, games, crafts, sports, puzzles, comic books, and other items for kids.

Jeffrey's was reportedly the inspiration for the Pixar film Toy Story. (Mark Luhn's son, Matthew, was one of the filmmakers behind the hit animated trilogy.) The store is also believed to have been the first in America to carry Legos.

It's still early days for the new location—it's got just one review on Yelp thus far.

Ken G., who was the first Yelper to review the new spot on October 15th, said: "It was a sad day when their Market Street location closed a couple of years ago (the previous space is still vacant) and but it was awesome news to hear that they'd be reopening in San Francisco. The customer service is still good and they definitely fill something that was missing in the area."

Head on over to check it out: Jeffrey's Toys is open Monday–Saturday from 10am–7pm, and Sunday from 10am–6pm.